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Husband and a father of two, juggler of time and money. Read more Cullowhee, United States
  • TravelerNova Scotia & Newfoundland
    Day 5

    Cape Breton Highlands National Park

    July 7, 2018 in Canada ⋅ 🌧 13 °C

    Day five. The morning came with brilliant speed and strong winds that brought the smell of the ocean into our home. The open windows in our bedroom forced us to layer up with another blanket half way through the night, a welcomed inconvenience. Smells of eggs and spinach, potatoes and strong coffee came from the kitchen where Forest has been cooking up a mad storm of breakfast quiches. God bless him. Waiting the recommended 10 minutes after eating, I decided to go out for a run by the sea. There is a pot hole infused dirt road in front of our house that borders the ocean cliff; a fine place for a run. The wind was a training partner that I came to love and loathe. In one direction it’s a helpful coach, literally pushing you here and there when you need it, in the other direction it’s the hand of the devil pushing you backward and blowing dirt in your eyes, but I pushed out 3 1/2 miles under 7:30 per mile so that justified all the alcohol I would consume today. We all wanted to do some more hiking in the Highlands, so.... we didn’t. Instead we made it to the visitor center right before the park entrance to let the kids play around on the playground. We did do a “hike” sorta... more like walking really slowly beside a river for a mile up then back. We stopped at our turn around point by a section of the river that was small and slow moving so the kids could play on the rocks and sand. When does the adult stuff begin? Must be soon...
    We heard that a local bar in the town of Cheticamp had some Cape Breton fiddlers playing this afternoon so we headed over to the small pub only to be told we couldn’t come inside...because we had kids. Apparently in Canada when the music starts playing the restaurant turns into a pub, and kids aren’t allowed. But the owner said with a wink that if we order some food and eat real slow then technically we would still be doing the restaurant thing and not the pub thing and it would be ok...but once we’re done eating that’s it. So we listened to about 30 minutes of really good fiddling before we had to leave...but really, once you’ve heard 30 minutes of world renowned fiddle music in the highlands of Cape Breton where children are taught to play the fiddle before they feed themselves who needs to hear more?
    So home we went and home we stayed for the rest of the day. It was warm today, windy, and not a cloud in the sky. Addie got her chance to swim in the freezing ocean and the Adults finally getting their time to do adult things...napped.
    Tomorrow we say goodbye to Cape Breton; time to move onward and northward toward the new land they found just a few years back. They called it Newfoundland, because that makes so much sense.    Read more

  • TravelerNova Scotia & Newfoundland
    Day 4

    Cape Breton Highlands

    July 6, 2018 in Canada ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    Day four. The sun sets late and rises early here on Cape Breton Island. 6am and the sun thinks it’s 9:30. So does James apparently, he’s triggered to rise at the point in time when we’re the most tired, or relaxed, or...something else. But after clambering up the bed and kneeing me in the groin for good measure, he actually fell back to sleep again...well good for him, I’m up.
    Pancakes and black coffee, fruit salad and really good Dutch cheese. Breakfast is on the large dining room table and the morning conversation is a mix of English and Dutch and toddler speak. Somehow we decided to drive a short way into Cape Breton National Park and take a hike, the resulting outing was awesome! The drive alone is worth doing over, maybe with a good dose of whiskey and about triple the speed. I’m just kidding of course...that would be irresponsible. But probably fun.
    The hike was about 3 miles, not bad, and climaxed when we were just about blown off a cliff in 50 mph wind gusts. I’m not kidding of course. We did the Skyline trail that is very popular apparently with parents of young children. The shear cliff faces and hurricane winds must be too tempting for parents to NOT bring their offspring. Some primal survival test must awaken within us that makes us experiment on our children to see if they’re fit for this world. Most make it...
    Once you are at the top, you are rewarded with amazing views of the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the French Mountain...and 50 MPH gusts of freaking wind man...I mean major blowing going on. Wear a poncho at your own risk dumbass and sail away. James being 3, had morphed into a koala and found some marsupial pouch I didn’t know about on Heather and waited it out; smart kid.
    The hike down was like all hikes down...boring. James fell asleep and stayed asleep if Heather carried him. He’d awaken quickly and violently each time we tried to put him in my arms, bear cub sensing that papa bear might eat him I guess. No matter, Heather likes lifting toddler kettle balls on a mountain.
    Car ride to ice cream, ice cream on car seats, home... rest... relaxation for like 10 minuets until we scramble back into our respective automobiles and scurry off to a nearby restaurant by the sea...they’re all by the sea, and order us up some lobster!
    Lobster is done right in this country, they’re big and juicy and it’s a meal that you get to break things to eat. They give you tools to eat this crustacean; pliers and picks and big plastic bib, because nobody can cleanly eat a lobster; we’re all reduced to toddlers with this kind of meal. This particular boiled little screamer had a nice surprise of roe hidden under its shell...a nice creamy bonus of lobster caviar!
    Some homemade blueberry pie came next and I decided I’d live here quite comfortably. Drove back to our house and capped the night with some 14 year old whiskey that was distilled about 20 miles away and I decided to sell our house back home. Who knew.... Canada!    Read more

  • TravelerNova Scotia & Newfoundland
    Day 3

    Old Grand Lac Rd, NS, Canada

    July 5, 2018 in Canada ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    Day three. This morning was beautiful in downtown Halifax, the sun was blinding over the bay but it was worth the pain to dumbly stare at the hot orb as it’s reflection slowly moved in the sky. Warm too for Halifax, by 7am the temps were in the 70’s and highs were going to be well into the 80’s; those are temps for the locals to be concerned about! Shorts? Where did I pack those shorts back in 86’?
    We were packed and on the road by 10 am, headed north into Cape Breton and away from the oppressive heat!! The drive was nice but mainly we were driving in forests with occasional glimpses of the sea. We stopped halfway through at a local bakery for a pit stop and some lunch. It was local and simple, old chairs and tables on a stained rug throughout the small dining room...but the food was honest and good and came with a friendly, and very happy hostess. I had a steak sandwich on a recently homemade bun with a delectable au-jus that was so good I drank the remaining dregs straight from the small pitcher. Both kids had breakfast for lunch, French toast for Addie, also home made bread, and a waffle for the boy. Heather had a bowl of seafood chowder that was...you guessed it, homemade and fresh as you can get when you live on an island.
    Two hours down and two to go, the driving is easy and actually pretty pleasant, when the two evil demons from the back seat are behaving and mindlessly sucked into iPad purgatory. I’m kidding, they were truthfully being...somewhat good, I only lost my mind twice.
    When we arrived at the house it was just what I wanted: secluded, exposed to nature, a small jaunty skip away from the beach, and big enough to accommodate the entire family. The ocean is the main focus, just about viewable from every window. The grass that surrounds the area is really an extension of the ocean, it moves and flows like the water, creating an illusion of sorts of what’s land and what’s water. In other words, the place is dramatic, and cool... and I like it here.
    The afternoon was mainly spent by the ocean walking around the cliffs that border the beach and talking with the rest of the family. Plans are being made and details sorted...the nitty gritty of traveling with large numbers. But thank god we have more PhD’s on the trip then the average college... I think we’ll be ok. If we study hard.    Read more

  • TravelerNova Scotia & Newfoundland
    Day 2

    1891 Upper Water St, Halifax, NS, Canada

    July 4, 2018 in Canada ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    Day two. Travel from Atalanta to Toronto then to Halifax. Atlanta-Toronto leg was pretty painless, upgraded seats on Delta helped with long legs and antsy kiddos; Bloody Marys helped the chi flow. Toronto’s airport is weird and confusing, to us anyway, as the signs are not really helpful and the auto check in kiosks are prejudiced against non Canadian passports. That’s according to one helpful airport whisp that was floating near by. Final leg to Halifax aboard WestJet was spent observing two older women, my seat mates, kick and squish their beloved cats, entombed in their pale purple mesh cages, under their seats, until the “sweet darlings” were completely and thoroughly fucked...err, safe and secure, muttering the entire trip, “never again”...
    Halifax arrival and car rental accruement; nice and shiny with the new car smell Jetta, kids strapped and Google maps loaded...downtown Marriott inbound.
    The place is nice, right on the harbor nice rooms and walking distance to all things beer and lobster. Time is limited unfortunately and we hit up the first generic Halifax, “come eat lobster here Americans” restaurant... But you know what? It was good...very good, the lobster was fresh and big, and the meat oh so wonderful.
    Ice cream on the short walk back, the Mint Cownadian was the best chocolate mint ice cream I’ve ever eaten... The bar in the hotel also makes a pretty damn good Old Fashioned...but, and here is a golden travel tip... If you want to drink said beverages in your hotel room, you can’t order at the hotel bar and carry those wonderful concoctions up your self...nope, the only way to drink a hotel bar drink in your hotel room is to request the help of room service foot soldiers to bring them up to you. Genius!
    We’re off tomorrow on a 4 to 5 hour drive to Cape Breton to meet up with the rest of the clan. Halifax looks like fun, it tastes good... I’d like to see and eat more of Halifax sometime soon, but it’s not on the plan... for now the promise of music, beer, liquor, family, and oh yes.. lobster, await.    Read more

  • TravelerNova Scotia & Newfoundland
    Day 1

    2091 Convention Center Concourse, Colleg

    July 3, 2018 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C

    Day one. After a three hour drive to Atlanta, we’re now tucked away in our airport hotel, waiting for tomorrow’s flight to Toronto, then on to Halifax. Both kids went insane the second we walked into our hotel room, pent up energy finally finding a vent. Our hotel is the same one we stayed at when we went to Colombia, a year and a half ago. It’s nice as it lets us keep our truck parked at the hotel during our vacation, and it has a tram right outside that leads to the international terminal.
    The rest of our group: Kevin, Barb, Forest, Heleen, and Mies will arrive in Halifax today. Looking forward to meeting up with everyone in a different country once again, with different food different music, different smells; exposing our kids to the world, one country at a time.    Read more

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